


Here to Embrace

by Raspberry_Omega



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One), Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, This is the tag that took me ten minutes to think of just so there is one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-03-03 06:30:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13335426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raspberry_Omega/pseuds/Raspberry_Omega
Summary: Fort Max suffers a flashback and loses control. The reaction of his suite mate takes him by surprise – once he comes back to himself and realises what he has done.





	Here to Embrace

Retrosphere had just stepped into the hab suite when he sensed that something was off.

Fort Max was sitting on the edge of his own berth with his helm hanging low. He was quiet as usual, which was no surprise, but if Omega Retrosphere had ever possessed talent for anything at all, that would be vibing other bots’ mood. He did not have an equal knack concerning the descriptive power required to actually express his concerns and provide support, but once he got in the range of someone he’d almost always know how they were feeling.

And Fort Max was feeling very bad.

Omega’s processor immediately tensed up. His pedes slowed down to exceptionally gentle moves without the involvement of his consciousness, as he neared Max as soundlessly as he could.

‘Max?’ he called out, tentative.

Max did not reply.

Anyone else would have figured that the teal mech had been sulking, but Retrosphere knew otherwise. Max had had all his senses pulled back and confined in something happening in his internal world, so much so his receptors had closed themselves from signals from the outside. In this status, such signals might appear as disturbance as well.

But if Max was indeed having a flashback, he’d definitely have to interfere. He couldn’t just stand there and watch his beloved being consumed by the horrors of the past.

A silver-grey servo was placed on one massive teal shoulder and the black helm turned around after a two-second delay. There was obvious irritation in Max’s crimson optics and that irritation was slowly morphing into wrath.

Rationally, at that moment, Retrosphere knew that although Max was staring right at him, he was not seeing him. He was seeing whomever his processor was making him see, as the hallucinogenic parts of his module were overlapping the visual so badly he could not tell things apart any more.

It almost came within expectation, when Max’s fist met his face in a deadly blow. Retrosphere bemused himself for a split-second on how he had seen Max’s right arm spring up in slow motion and braced himself instead of taking evasive stances. He was no masochist; the moment he hit the floor with an audial-piercing clang, uncontrollable fury rose from the depths of his instincts and he just felt like tearing the helm off whoever had launched the attack on him. He was glad reason kept him in line.

‘Max! Snap out of it!’ Retrosphere growled as he held Fort Max’s fists with his servos. Somehow a part of him knew that at the moment, allowing Max to beat up his imaginary target was probably a better way to discharge his stress than yanking him back into reality, but a good beating from Fort Max...that wasn’t like something anybot could take.

Having gained no advantage wrestling with the other big guy, Max hauled up his leg and kicked the blue and violet bot in the thigh. Retrosphere yelped and let go of Max’s servos, and immediately regretted it. Max dragged him up by the shoulder to get a good aim, and struck the heaviest blow so far into his midsection with a giant teal servo.

Retrosphere collapsed on the floor, writhing in agony, utilised energon streaming through between his digits as he clutched his wound with both servos. His mouth hung open in a prolonged, silent gasp as he temporarily powered off his vocaliser to avoid making any sound. The pain I’m feeling is but a reflection of the pain on Max’s mind, he thought. And that thought had eased the pain in his stomach immeasurably.

‘I hate being a hypocrite,’ the moment he realised he had said it out loud, he had already done and Max had already heard it. The teal giant looked a bit confused as he watched his opponent pick himself up from the floor and slowly regained composure.

There was something in Retrosphere’s optics that had never appeared there before.

Retrosphere straightened himself up the best he could, and tried to look the part, carrying his frame the heavy-weight-class way which he almost never did. ‘You piece of scrap, utterly useless slagger,’ he curled up one corner of his mouth into a smirk, and breathed through the clenched denta, ‘come fight me. Scratch my paint.’

He was letting him blow off steam anyway. Why not go all the way?

‘I’ll paste you on the wall.’ Max vocalised for the first time since the scenario had begun. The deep, menacing resonance was something very new and unsettling to Retrosphere. He was starting to doubt if he was punching above his weight by letting Fort Max decompress by getting physical with him and even provoking him, but it was already too late to think things through.

It dawned upon Retrosphere that he was probably going to die if this continued when he got flung into another wall and a sharp piece of fractured armour penetrated a compartment structure inches from his spark chamber. He shoved Max off with all the strength he could muster with his injured frame and ran towards the entrance of the suite. Max readied his blasters.

Retrosphere turned and saw lasers aiming at his frame. He wouldn’t be quick enough for evasive moves with all that physical pain, and figured he should probably brace.

Then the door slid open with a beep to reveal Rodimus, Ultra Magnus, Rung and Red Alert. Three contingency-ops droids swept in at ultrasonic speed and implemented stasis cuffs on Fort Max before anyone could shutter an optic.

I’m not a hypocrite, Retrosphere thought to himself before blacking out, for I’m so glad you all are here to rescue me.

 

He woke up to a familiar black helm and grey face hovering over him. The optics would appear no different to others, but Retrosphere saw no danger in them anymore. And he let a smile surface on his own face as that thought crossed his mind.

‘O…Omega,’ Max started, ‘how come you didn’t fight back?’ He was blushing, and he had on the pained look with his brow ridges squeezed together again. ‘Or you could at least have sounded the alarm.’

Retrosphere simply looked at him with lips pulled up into a thin line and optics half shuttered to indicate a smile.

Max rubbed his face up and down with his giant servos as he tried to come up with words appropriate to this perplexing situation. He didn’t notice Retrosphere sitting up.

Teal servos were brushed away by silver-grey ones and before Max had the time to register what was going on, Retrosphere’s lips were on his.

Clumsily bringing his servos up to hold the violet helm, Max all too eagerly reciprocated the kiss.

He did not need to speak up. Neither of them was particularly good at conveying anyway.

Then again, why bother with the intricacies of words, when you could feel how each other felt?


End file.
